Instrumentation: Solo Viola/Viola Duo and Singing Audience
Duration: 8-11 minutes.
Originally written for Vijay Chalasani and the Guerrilla Composers Guild

Dum spiro… comes from the common Latin phrase “Dum spiro spero” (While I breathe, I hope.) Attributed to the poet Theocritus, it is most famously associated with the Roman statesman Cicero. There are dozens of adaptations throughout history by artists and politicians, but my work is only concerned with the simple act of breathing, something that the works of Pauline Oliveros taught me as a young composer. This flexible piece was written to be performed in any of the following combinations: solo viola, two violas in canon, solo viola with audience participation, or two violas with audience participation.

The piece is a repeated form akin to a dreamy passacaglia. It follows a sinuous texture which should be both compelling and inviting for the audience. I’ve been drawn to the sounds of Pauline Oliveros and specifically her Sonic Meditations since my earliest days composing when we performed music by her at The Walden School. I was lucky enough to have met her before her passing, and I’ll always remember fondly how quick she was to respond to emails by budding undergraduate composers. The harmonic language progresses ever so slowly to ease singers into the shifting harmonies rather than push them away.

Only a few dynamics are given: the intro, the climax, and the end. The piece should feel like an arc, and the performer has the liberty to wax and wane as necessary to invite the audience members to join them. 

-        Nicolás Lell Benavides